OSK 1: Cherryclan's Beginning
by Honeystorm
Summary: Cherrystar, founder of Cherryclan, was once an American alleycat born to one of the last surviving lake-clan cats. This is the story of her struggle to keep the clan traditions-and her mother's hope-alive.
1. Prologue

Ah, Bramblefur. You have always been one of my favorites for your interest in our clan's history. I am also impressed how you can sense spirits much like the medicine cats of the clans. Perhaps your gift is unique, or perhaps it will appear again in later generations. These things have a funny way of showing themselves.

I have been in Starclan for so long, that you seem like a newborn kit to me despite your age and knowledge. Do you mind if I call you a kit? No? Well, kit, as you very well know, I was once Cherrystar, the founder and first leader of Cherryclan. I know that you have been brought up to believe that I hold your world in my jaws but that is not so as before Cherryclan, I was an ordinary alleycat, struggling to survive when my world was torn apart.

You did not know that? Well, keep in mind that we all have a beginning and mine was a rather humble one. The other founders and I came together, bound by a greater purpose: we wished to create a home in which we and our children and their children after could live in peace and safety. It is a pity that so many of my friends and fellow founders have been Forgotten, for there was very little to mark them as "special" at the time. Now, many wander Starclan in peace as shadows of their former selves. But you have come to hear my story, not the ramblings of an ancient leader. Well then, my kit, you will receive your wish: the story of my life.


	2. Chapter 1

The tiny molly felt cold for the first time and wailed as she struggled for warmth. She felt the rasp of a tongue then felt herself pushed towards warmth. She pressed up against _something_. That something had nubs and she latched onto one, sucking greedily and ceasing her cries of hunger. Soon, she was joined by a pair of warm bodies her size. The molly let go of her nub and mewled, unhappy with this new arrangement. She quickly grabbed onto her nub as the warmth on her left moved closer. She pushed with tiny paws and kept on sucking.

The next day, Carppelt was ready to name her kits. She called in Brody, her mate and the only tom she felt safe with. "Cherrykit for the ginger kit and Pikekit for the brown," she said.

"And the tom?" asked Brody, looking at his kits with wonder and pride. He didn't understand how Carppelt's old clan had named their kits but wasn't about to interfere with something clearly important to his mate. Pikekit shifted against her mother, pushing against Cherrykit. The three kits were asleep, curled peacefully against their mother.

"I was thinking Birchkit," replied Carppelt. "I'm sure he'll look striking when he's grown." She smiled down at the tiny tom. He yawned, opening his mouth to reveal a small pink tongue.

"I agree," murmured Brody. Indeed, Birchkit had taken after his father in his white-and-striped coloration. "I'll go hunt." He padded out of the den made of human rubbish, leaving his mate and kits behind to rest.

* * *

It was almost two weeks before the kits opened their eyes. Cherrykit was the first and was confused at all the blurry faces she now saw. When she looked up, she saw the blurry image of her mother as a large striped brown body. Looking at her littermates, she saw her brother Birchkit, who was white with black stripes, and her sister Pikekit, who was brown and striped like their mother. Looking down, Cherrykit's eyes widened in surprise as she saw herself for the first time. Though she still couldn't see well, she knew that she was ginger and striped with long fur like her brother and...father! She smelled Brody before she saw him. Cherrykit's father came into the den, holding a mouse in his jaws and did a double-take when he saw her looking at him with open eyes.

"Carppelt!" he exclaimed. "Cherrykit's opened her eyes!"

Carppelt laughed, looking down at her daughter. Cherrykit looked up, tensing, alarm evident in her kitten-blue eyes before relaxing as nothing bad happened. "Well, she _is_ the eldest. You're going to be competitive," said Carppelt, whiskers twitched with amusement. "Aren't you?"

Cherrykit looked up in utter bemusement as she couldn't yet understand what her parents were saying. She mewled in surprise as her stomach rumbled with hunger and looked around. Where were the nubs she had fed from?

"Right here, dear," murmured an understanding Carppelt, nudging her kit to the only sourse of food she knew. As Cherrykit fed, the parents exchanged glances.

"She seems like she'll carry on your traditions," chuckled Brody.

"I certainly hope so," was Carppelt's reply.

* * *

By the time Cherrykit and her siblings were two moons old, they had learned to speak and loved to simulate clan battles of seasons past that their mother had told them about. When they were three moons old, Brody disappeared. The kits didn't notice for a couple of days whereupon they began to pester their mother as to when their father was coming back. Carppelt always replied "Soon" with her tail down and eyes softened in sadness. By the time the kits were four moons old, they had all but forgotten their father.

Carppelt decided to start training her kits in the ways of a warrior when they were almost five moons old. Though a violation of the Warrior Code, life as an alleycat was harsh and they would need the skills to survive. She started with the basics of hunting and fighting, both of which came naturally to Cherrykit.

"Now, jump and aim your paws towards your target!" called Carppelt to Cherrykit, who was sparring with Birchkit just outside their den.

Cherrykit complied and hit her brother in his face, as he had been too slow to dodge. He growled and lunged at her. She neatly dodged and watched him turn. Birchkit ran forward and lunged again, neatly pinning his sister. Cherrykit wriggled out of his grip and subsequently pinned him.

"I won!" she squealed with delight. Birchkit went limp and she relaxed, thinking that the fight was over. Instead, he rolled onto his stomach and arched his back, sending her a couple kittenlength backwards. Though she nearly crumpled from her landing, she recovered quickly to continue the fight.

"Ha," said Birchkit, mischief gleaming in his bright green eyes. The triplet's eyes had changed to their adult colors about a half-moon ago and only Pikekit shared their mother's amber eyes.

"This isn't over," hissed Cherrykit good-naturedly before springing at her brother.

As her siblings sparred, Pikekit sat near her mother, a thoughtful expression on her face. She was resting after losing a sparring match with Cherrykit and had thought of a new idea. Turning to her mother, she said, "I think I wanna become a medicine cat."

"Why?" asked Carppelt curiously.

"Because medicine cats are important; they save lives and are close to Starclan. And I think I'd like seeing you all the time. That way, you're always with me." Pikekit leaned on her mother, a dreamy smile on her muzzle.

Carppelt started. She had never envisioned training a medicine cat and silently prayed to her ancestors for help and guidance. Out loud, she said, "I don't know much about herbs, but I'll do my best."

And so while Cherrykit and Birchkit learned about the basics of hunting, fighting, and tracking, Pikekit also learned about herbs, poisons, and Starclan. Their training continued for about two moons until their seventh moon, when the triplets were separated from their mother.


	3. Chapter 2

"Mother?" No one answered Cherrykit's quiet pleading.

Birchkit hissed in disgust. "I should've fought the human! Why didn't you let me?" he asked, turning an accusing glare onto Cherrykit. She quailed at his glance.

"Sh-she told us to go!"

Pikekit sat in silence, the calmest of the three, though no one could mistake it for anything but grief. "Do you remember Hibiscus?" she asked. After a moment, her siblings nodded. "Maybe she'll take us in; she said that she'd help us if we ever needed her."

"But...but how are we going to find her?" asked Cherrykit. "She has only visited us a couple of time and she never told us where she lives!"

"We'll find her," said Birchkit, determination entering his voice.

For three days, the triplets wandered the streets of the city. They hunted for themselves and stayed out of the way of older cats. Sunhigh on the fourth day, they found Hibiscus, their mother's friend who took them in after hearing their story. She told them that any friend or kit or Carppelt was a friend of hers, and that they would always have a place with her.

Seasons ago, Carppelt had told Hibiscus about the clans and so when the kits requested a clan-type apprenticeship and training, the older molly humored them by performing the ceremonies she vaguely remembered to renamed them Cherrypaw and Birchpaw as warrior apprentices and Pikepaw as a medicine cat apprentice. Over the course of almost eight moons, Hibiscus taught the three how to better hunt, fight, and track, and in accordance to Pikepaw's wishes, taught the black tabby what the elder molly knew about herbs and healing.

* * *

By the time the triplets were about fourteen moons old, they were well-muscled young adults and Hibiscus thought it was time they received their full names in accordance. While Hibiscus mainly entertained the thought to humor her charges, they were extremely enthusiastic about the idea.

"I think-no, I _know_ that it's time you received your full names," said Hibiscus one day as the four cats rested in the sun.

Birchpaw's ears perked up. "Really? I bet that because I'm the best at everything, I'll have the coolest suffix ever!" he bragged to Cherrypaw.

Cherrypaw snorted with suppressed laughter. "Well, I'm more well-rounded than you," she retorted. "You couldn't hunt to save your life!"

"Hey!" he complained. "I'm not _that_ bad, am I?" he asked Pikepaw.

Pikepaw's whiskers twitched. "Well, I'd say that you shouldn't hold your hopes up..." she teased, barely holding in her own laughter. While she was clearly the calmest of the three, her tail twitched in a manner reminiscent of a cat ready to pounce, the only sign of her eagerness.

When Hibiscus saw just how eager the triplets were to receive their names, she asked them to recite the suffixes and their meanings in order for her to choose the most suitable name for each. After some careful consideration, Hibiscus chose Cherryfang for her excellent hunting and fighting skills, Birchclaw as he was the largest and best at both intimidation and fighting, and Pikepelt for though she had no ability or personality described by the suffixes, she was nonetheless a hard worker who had a talent for diffusing conflicts. The three were content with Hibiscus's decisions and declared her to not only be the best mentor in all the world, but also the best mother they ever had. Even a few days later, Hibiscus glowed from the praise.

* * *

Three moons later, Cherryfang and her siblings had decided to put their plan into motion. Growing up and hearing about what Riverclan was like, the three wanted to create their own clan. Their own family. Their own home. Pikepelt had wanted her sister to wait, as they were hardly considered adults, but Birchclaw was all for going ahead. When asked, Hibiscus was interested in helping to set up the new clan for she had grown attached to the kits and viewed them as her own. However, she expected that she would simply help find willing cats and then go her own way. Instead, the triplets asked if she was willing to join their currently unnamed clan as a warrior, as Cherryfang was considered the de-facto leader, Birchclaw was her deputy, and Pikepelt was the medicine cat. Hibiscus was stunned; they wanted _her_ to join? An ordinary alleycat with no knowledge or connections to the clans? She agreed, of course, and was renamed Whiteclaw for her white fur, fighting prowess, and protective nature. The last thing that needed to be decided was the name for the budding clan. They eventually decided on "Cherryclan" after the leader, no matter how much Cherryfang protested. Her siblings also insisted on calling her "Cherrystar" despite her lack of nine lives because, as Pikepelt argued, it would show other cats that she was clearly their leader and was special.

Another moon was spent on teaching Whiteclaw more about clan traditions, honing their skills, and deciding on a direction in which to travel. Once decided, they started heading to the northeast in hopes that they could find more cats for their clan and a territory to settle in. The journey would end up taking seasons, a length that none of them had originally intended to travel.


	4. Chapter 3

Cherrystar, Birchclaw, Pikepelt, and Whiteclaw walked along the fence, searching for a pair of loners. A kittypet in a nearby house had told the clan cats that the pair they were looking for was a black-and-white tom and his ginger tabby mate. For the past couple of days, they had stayed in the human territory, taking food from helpful kittypets and hunting birds when they could. They had decided that if they couldn't find the pair within the next couple of days, they would have to recruit others or move on.

"I hear something," Whiteclaw hissed suddenly.

The other three swiveled their ears in hopes of catching the sound. Cherrystar glanced down to see two pairs of eyes peeking out of a bush. The dark ginger tabby waved her tail and jumped down. The eyes retreated but there was a rustling in the bush. They smelled well-fed and strong, a boon to any clan. _They might make good warriors,_ she thought, _if they accept._

"We won't harm you," said Cherrystar evenly, forcing herself to remain calm. She was only a little more than four seasons old and surely these loners would be older. Would they even bother to listen?

A black-and-white tom stepped out. He looked to be younger than Whiteclaw but older than Cherrystar and her siblings. His posture spoke of utter confidence but his twitching ears showed nervousness. "Who're you?" he drawled, sitting down in front of the shrub. "I've never seen you before."

"I'm Birchclaw," said the silver tabby tom, "these two are my sisters, Pikepelt and Cherrystar, and this is Whiteclaw."

"Strange names," commented the other tom.

"We're clan cats," explained Cherrystar.

The black-and-white tom's only reaction to this was a twitch of his ears. "I'm Cloud."

"And your mate?" asked Pikepelt.

Green eyes bored into amber. "I don't know who you're talking about."

 _Protective,_ thought Cherrystar. _It might take a bit to win them over._ Out loud, she said, "We're here because we wish to recruit you and your mate into our clan."

"And what is a... _clan_?" asked Cloud.

"A clan is a family," replied Pikepelt, "where cats live and hunt together, protect each other, and help to raise the next generation. Everyone has a role in a clan. Cherrystar is the leader, and makes decisions that will affect the clan as a whole such as pairing mentors and apprentices. Birchclaw is her deputy, and makes the daily decisions such as who to send out on patrols. I'm the medicine cat; I take care of the clan's physical and spiritual needs. Warriors like Whiteclaw hunt and fight for the clan. For each other. Though we don't have any yet, elders are retired warriors who have earned a great deal of respect for having lived so long." She finished with a nervous glance at her sister. Cherrystar nodded with approval. It had been a good summary of what clans were, and what they hoped it to be.

Cloud chuckled with disbelief. "And what if you're injured?"

"Then you rest while someone else takes over your duties," said Cherrystar. "A healthy cat on patrol is more useful than a sick or injured cat on patrol. Besides, injuries can get aggravated which would be bad for your long-term health, while sicknesses can spread."

"What about kits?"

"Kits are protected," replied Cherrystar, an angry glint in her eye. "They cannot be harmed or taken on patrols. The queens will be sequestered to prevent any...accidents from happening. And if anyone shows an inclination to harm a kit of their own free will, we _will_ exile them."

"I think I've heard enough," said a soft voice from behind Cloud. A ginger tabby, heavily pregnant, stepped out delicately from behind the bush. "If you can protect me and my kits, I'm willing to join."

"But Garcia-!" said Cloud quickly.

"No," she responded with an air of finality. "You seem like good people. And a few helpers in raising my kits wouldn't hurt." Cloud seemed as though he wanted to say more, but didn't speak. "We will get new names?"

"Yes," responded Cherrystar, relieved that they had managed to win the pair. "A new name for a new life. And your kits will receive clan names, too."

Garcia dipped her head in acknowledgement. "So be it," she said.

"What are you like?" asked Whiteclaw, her first words since pointing out where the pair was. Cloud and Garcia blinked their confusion. "Do you have any notable skills? Personality traits?"

"Garcia's the best hunter I've ever seen," bragged Cloud. "No other loner could _hope_ to match her."

Pikepelt laughed softly. "I'm sure that she'll make up for Birchclaw's... _deficiencies._ "

"Hey!" exclaimed Birchclaw. "That's not fair. I've gotten better."

Cherrystar flicked her tail to stop her siblings before the banter got any worse. "And you, Cloud?"

"Uhh..."

"He's kind," replied Garcia. "Kind, calm, gentle. Everything you want in a mate."

"Then welcome to Cherryclan," said Cherrystar, "as Beewhisker and Magpiecloud." As she said the names, she looked at the appropriate cat.

"Beewhisker," mused the black-and-white tom. "I like the sound of that."

The newly-renamed Beewhisker smiled. "And your name is perfect. Thank you," she said to Cherrystar, "for taking us in."

Cherrystar dipped her head. "I will warn you," she said, "that we will be travelling in order to recruit more cats and to find a territory free of clowders and gangs. When your kits are old enough to be apprenticed and start learning how to hunt and fight, we will not give them to you as it would be better for them to learn how to be independent of their parents. However, if we find apprentice-aged cats, we may ask you to mentor them in clan ways."

"We understand," said Magpiecloud and Beewhisker together. The tom snorted with near-silent laughter.

"Then let's go." Cherrystar gave a flick of her tail and without waiting to see if the others were following, padded off.

* * *

The next two seasons were spent well, as Magpiecloud and Beewhisker seemed to serve as a catalyst. They learned about clan ways quickly and helped teach new recruits what they had been taught. More than ten cats had joined the clan but more often than not, would leave for various reasons. Lilac, Spectre, and Bird, who had been renamed to Tawnystripe, Blackfur, and Blizzardface, had been the only three retentions. While unfortunate, Cherrystar preferred a small number of cats who were completely dedicated to clan life instead of many cats whose loyalties were questionable. Beewhisker's two kits, Mistkit and Nightkit, were almost ready for their apprenticeships by this time. A third kit had been found, seemingly abandoned by her parents. She had been renamed to Lightkit for her pale gray fur.

Another season passed and another mated pair, along with their apprentice-aged son and warrior-aged friend, joined the clan. They were renamed, too, and Cherrystar noted with approval how quickly Duskpaw became friends with now-Lightpaw. All the cats were taught about clan ways and Pikepelt had been surprised but pleased to note how many had believed in some form of the afterlife and how accepting they were of an afterlife reserved for clan cats. It was interesting, the medicine cat had once noted, how they believed that while they would now go to Starclan, they would still be able to interact with their loner family and friends. But whatever beliefs they held could be excused, she had concluded, as long as they were loyal to Cherryclan.

Another moon and Beewhisker was pregnant again. The clan was elated and Tawnystripe insisted on holding a celebration in which the clan rested for a day and jubilant pair ate more prey than their usual allotment. Soon after, a kittypet named Rose joined the clan as Dawnface for her exotic-looking elongated features. The clan was, for the most part, content, but there were a few points that Cherrystar intended to address. For one, they needed a territory to claim as their own. She could only hope that they would find a suitable wilderness in which they could stake their claim. In addition, Pikepelt had been pestering her to start looking for a medicine cat apprentice as an insurance policy for the budding clan. Thankfully, the second point was easily resolved when Brownpaw, formerly a young brown-furred loner named Esther agreed to join the clan as Pikepelt's apprentice. Soon after, two more warriors-Fawnflower and Gingerstorm-joined the clan. By this time, they had finally appeared to reach the limits of the human territories and were looking at a forest. Perhaps they would find what they were looking for here, although Cherrystar had her doubts. They would need to travel deep into the forest to avoid humans, and would need a defensible camp. The first complaint was easy to resolve but the second... Maybe they would get lucky. She could only hope.


End file.
